The Year of the Human
by TigerWolf12
Summary: Splinter and the turtles are given a chance to be human, which is something Splinter lost and the turtles never had. Watch as the brothers explore life as humans, and how they deal with their new gift. There will be canon pairings.
1. Chapter 1

**Note:** I wanted to do another story for TMNT that was separate from _Raphael's family_, which is another fanfic I have on here. I wanted to do another what if type thing and this plot bunny has been nagging at me for a bit, so I have decided to start it. This will be more humor than anything else, which will have filler chapters as well as some serious chapters, but overall this is a humor story. This is also a hybrid, so to speak, that includes elements from the Mirage Comics, the 2003 series, the 2012 series, and others. I don't own the franchise; it belongs to their original creators, 4kids, and now Nickelodeon.

**Being Human**

Master looked at the picture of his beloved sons, each one was smiling, or in Raphael's case frowning, at the camera. Miss O'Neil had taken a picture of them when she was with her husband Casey. Casey and she had not seen them for a couple months, and April wanted to take a picture of them all together. Master Splinter smiled sadly, the reason they were not around, was due to Casey and April taking a cruise, and them not being able to go, since they were mutants. His sons deserved to know what it was like to be human; after all, he had been one once. His eyes narrowed, Shredder ended up killing Teng Shen while she had been pregnant with his child. He had lost both his wife and child that night, and almost lost his life as well.

"Mikey, you get back here so I can clobber you!"

Splinter was pulled from his thoughts by the voice of his second oldest son Raphael.

"Mikey why did you have to provoke him like that?"

That was the voice of his third son.

"Raphael leave Mikey alone, Mikey you need to stop doing things like this!"

That was the voice of his eldest son.

"It was totally worth it though, AAHHHH! Help Donnie, help Leo, Raph is beating me up!"

That was the voice of his youngest son.

"_Time to intervene_." Splinter thought, as he got to his feet.

"Boys! That is enough!" Splinter scolded as he waked to his sons.

Splinter caught his sons in the middle of their brawl. Well, not entirely a brawl, Leonardo and Donatello were trying to pull Raphael off of Michelangelo. By the looks of it, they were not very successful. Splinter sighed, and walked over to Raphael, and jabbed him in one of his pressure points in the neck. Raphael fell to the ground limp, but not out cold, Mikey took the opportunity to break free from his brother.

"Michelangelo!" Splinter snapped. "What did you do that made Raphael so angry?"

Michelangelo muttered something under his breath, which Splinter could not hear.

"Speak up, I did not hear you." Splinter told him.

"I kind of ruined his sports magazines." Michelangelo replied.

Splinter's ears flattened against his head in annoyance.

"What have I told you about respecting your brothers' property?" Splinter told him

"I know, I know, but I was so bored!" Mikey replied.

"Being bored does not give you an excuse to destroy Raphael's property." Splinter continued.

"I know, but we can't go topside, if I could I would be at an arcade or movie right now." Mikey complained.

"I am sorry son, but you cannot go topside, and you are still getting punished for your actions." Splinter told him.

"Aw man, that's not fair." Mikey whined.

"You are to clean up your room, and you will also clean up Raphael's room, as well as Donatello's room, and Leonardo's room." Splinter said.

"Sensei, I don't want him in my room." Leo said.

"Do you trust Mikey that much around my experiments?" Don asked.

Splinter looked at them, and then sighed.

"Very well, you will clean the lair after you clean your room. You also find and pay for the sports magazines that you ruined." Splinter said.

Mikey opened his mouth to complain, but shut it at Splinter's glare.

"Fine." Mikey said, heading to his room to begin his punishment.

By that point, Raphael was getting the feeling back in his body. He pulled himself up, and walked over to the couch where he plopped down. He began to message his neck where Splinter had nailed him in to hit his pressure point. Splinter sighed to himself when he saw a slight bruise, he had not intended to jab his son so hard.

"Why can't we go topside?" Raphael asked. "We've been allowed up there before, Shredder is gone, and we haven't been attacked in months."

"You know the reason, but if I have to repeat myself again, I will." Splinter told him. "Shredder is gone, and so are many of our old enemies, but with everything that happened I fear for your safety."

"You are just being paranoid!" Raphael snapped back, and then he paused. "It's because we're mutants isn't it, you are embarrassed of us, so you don't want anyone to see us. Well, you know what, I wish I were human, that way I could go to places I want, and not have to deal with an old rat's paranoia!"

Raphael got off the couch and stormed back to his room.

"I'll go talk to him Sensei." Donnie offered.

Splinter put a paw on Donnie's shoulder.

"Thank you Donatello." Splinter told him.

Splinter watched has his purple clad son leave to talk to Raphael. Leonardo had disappeared to the dojo, and Michelangelo was cleaning. Splinter went to his room, and sat down to think.

"Being a human would be awesome!"

Splinter opened his eyes almost an hour later at the sound of Michelangelo's voice.

"We could actually do something together."

That was Leonardo's voice.

"We could go to school, and date."

Splinter smiled faintly at Donatello's choice of words.

"I could hang out with Casey during the day, and not have to hide."

Splinter frowned at Raphael's words. None of his children ever got to experience being a human like he had been. He was born human, but was turned into a rat mutant. He looked at his hands, which were now paws. There were days that he wished he could turn back time, and have this never happen to him. Those thoughts were pushed aside, because a life without his sons was a life he did not want.

"_Being a human once more would not be so bad, even if it was for a short while. Not for me, but for my sons that never got the chance to experience life as a human._"

Splinter closed his eyes, and drifted off to sleep.

The next day Splinter woke up to the sound of silence. Usually his sons were up training, or in Donatello's case working on the computers. Michelangelo would often be reading a comic while watching television, or skateboarding. None of these things greeted him that day. Alarmed, Splinter ran from his room in search of his sons.

"Who are you?"

That was Raphael's voice!

"_I have come a long way to meet you._"

Splinter did not recognize that voice, and ran to where he heard Raphael's voice. When Splinter got there, he saw all four of his sons in front of a cloaked figure. Leonardo and Raphael were sitting the closest to the cloaked figure, with their hands on their weapons. Donatello was behind Leonardo and Michelangelo was behind Raphael. Splinter stalked over and stood in front of his sons.

"Who are you?" He demanded, echoing in son's question from before.

"_I have traveled a long way to give you a gift._" The cloaked figure told him. "_I was sent by your allies to grant you any wish that you desired, and I overheard your thoughts. I will grant you a wish that you all will enjoy._"

"What wish is that?" Leonardo asked in confusion.

"_I will give you a chance to be a human for a year, everything has been arranged to accommodate your new forms._"

The brothers looked at Splinter, who looked unsure of what to do. Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Donatello started to discuss the opportunity amongst themselves. Each of them gave Splinter a hopeful look, but he was not sure about the gift being offered to them.

"We accept your gift." Raphael said, never taking his eyes off of the cloaked figure.

The cloak figure nodded.

"_Your gift will be granted, you will all be humans for a year, once that year is up you will return to what you are._"

Before Splinter could scold his son, or decline the gift, all of them were surrounded by light. Splinter was blinded by it, but heard the cloaked figure chant their spell. That was all Splinter remembered, before everything went black.

**To Be Continued…**

Thank you for reading the first chapter of my story, this is going to be an ongoing story with four other stories as well. So I may not update as frequently as I want. Stay tuned for the next chapter. ^_^


	2. Where are we?

**Note:** Sorry for not updating, I am busy with work. Also, I have other stories on here that are all being worked on at different times. I have five on-going stories, that I may add on to the list later, and one completed story. Here is the next chapter to Year of the Human.

Where are we?

Leonardo was the first one to open his eyes, he felt groggy, and it took a moment for him to remember what had caused him to be knocked out. There had been a mysterious cloaked figure that entered the lair, but that person had been an ally. He remembered that the figure was going to give them a gift, and his hotheaded brother Raphael demanded to be human. The cloaked figure had chanted something, and that was the last thing Leonardo remembered.

_I feel lighter somehow…_

Leonardo looked down and saw two hands that had four fingers and a thumb on each one. The palms were facing up, and when he moved his fingers the fingers on the hand did the same. Confused he put the strange human hands on his head. To his surprise there was something that felt like hair there, a few pulls from he hands let him know that the hair was deeply rooted in his head. He went to touch his back, and his blood ran cold.

_Where is my shell?_

He needed a mirror, to see what happened to him, and to confirm that this was not all just a wishful dream. He staggered to his feet, and went to look for a mirror in the lair's bathroom. He was too out of it to realize that something was wrong with the lair when he went to look for the mirror. When he found one, he stared at it, but instead of seeing himself, he saw something else.

_I'm Human!_

Staring back at him in the mirror was a young teenaged boy that had black hair and dark blue eyes. The boy looked about fifteen to sixteen, and he had a somewhat delicate look to his face. The blue eyes were almond shaped, and the black hair was short and parted to the side. It took Leonardo a moment to comprehend that the human was him. He touched the small straight nose on his face, and ran his hands over the curves of his face. After a moment he realized he was cold, and saw that he did not have any clothes on, except for what he usually wore as a turtle. He shivered as he left the bathroom to search for some clothes.

_This isn't the lair!_

Leonardo was alarmed when his sluggish brain caught up with the events happening to him at the moment. The grogginess faded, and was replaced by a sharp mind. He moved cautiously around the strange place, until he saw a door with his name on it in blue. He slowly opened the door, and went inside, his eyes widened in shock. The room was decorated with all Japanese interior. There was a futon, and sliding doors that led to a balcony. The walls were decorated with Cherry Blossoms, and the books that lined the shelves contained Japanese history and other topics that covered the folklore. His katanas were displayed on the wall, with other Japanese swords. He walked over and saw robes resting on the bed, and saw a wardrobe with all sorts of outfits geared towards his interests.

_This is even better than my room at home!_

Leonardo was the pretty much the only one out of his brothers that wanted to embrace his father's heritage. They had interests as well, but he wanted to know the culture, and experience it himself. This room was his dream room, and he pinched himself to make sure it was real. He went over to the robes on his bed, and got undressed. He blushed at the sight of the white boxers, and it took him a few moments to figure out how to put them on. Once they were on, he pulled on the white loose fitting pants, and once those were on he pulled the top part of the robes on. The top was shirt like with slits on the sides, which ended near his waist. They were blue, and the bottom of the robes reached his knees. The sleeves were tighter at the top, but flowed and expanded towards the bottom. The top of the robes had a white section, which folded over almost like an undershirt. The robes were plain, but had black embroidered near the edges.

_Snap out of it Leo! You need to check on your family!_

Leonardo shook his head, and went in search of his family. He did not have to go far, since the names of his family were painted on the doors he came across. He found Master Splinter's room first; his father's name was painted on a door in gold. Unlike his door, this door was a sliding door. His father's room was more decorated in Japanese fashion than his was, but upon reflection, it made more sense to Leonardo. Leonardo slipped on some slippers his father had lined at the door; there were five pairs of slippers in total. He spotted his dad laying on a futon, and went over to check on him.

_Is this what he looked like before?_

Leonardo saw a middle aged man, with faint wrinkles around the eyes. The man had black hair, and tan colored skin. The man's eyes were closed, so Leonardo could not see his eyes. Leonardo reached over with his hand, and compared his skin tone to the man's skin tone. He was much paler than that man that lay before him. The man was wearing Master Splinter's robes, so unless he killed Master Splinter, the man was Master Splinter.

"Sensei?" Leonardo called, shaking the man's shoulder. "Dad?"

The man slowly woke up, and before Leonardo could react, the man had him pinned against the floor.

"Where are my sons? I don't care about whatever gift you gave us, tell me where they are now!" The man demanded.

Leonardo had never seen such anger in a person's face before. The man's eyes were a dark brown, and almond shaped, they were filled with anger. Leonardo tried to speak, but the hands around his neck prevented him from speaking. He stared at the man with dark blue eyes.

"Leonardo?" The man asked, loosening his grip.

The man, no his father, looked traumatized at what he had done.

"Dad, I'm okay." Leonardo assured him.

Master Splinter looked at his hands in shock, partly from what he had almost done, and partly from his own shock at being human.

"Where are your brothers?" Master Splinter asked.

"You were the first person I checked on, but they should be in their rooms." Leonardo replied.

Master Splinter left the room, completely ignoring a set of gold robes laying out for him. Leonardo followed after him. The first room they found and entered was Donatello's room. The third Hamato's son had an amazing room. The majority of the room was covered with items one would find in a high-tech and computers. Leonardo and Master Splinter found Donatello lying on a high-tech bed, which could be heated, cooled, turned into a couch, and other neat things. Both of them ignored it to check on their loved one.

"Donatello! Wake up!" Master Splinter begged, shaking his third son's shoulder.

Leonardo took the time to study his brother. Donatello had dark brown hair that reached a bit past his shoulders, and a face with a bit more delicate features than his own face. To his surprise, though, Donatello's skin shade was a shade darker than his own.

"Who? AAAHHH!" Donatello woke up in surprise.

Leonardo watched as his genius brother panicked at the sight of two humans looking at him. He caught a flash of brown eyes, as they widened in fear. Donatello then began to look for his Bo-staff.

"Donnie, relax, it's me." Leonardo told him.

"Leo?" Donatello asked.

"Yep, put some clothes on." Leonardo told him.

Donatello gave him a weird look, before looking down.

"AAHHH! What is all this what is going on?" Donatello yelled.

"Relax my son, put these on, and meet us in five minutes." Master Splinter told him, handing him a pair of folded clothes.

Master Splinter and Leonardo left the room so that Donatello could change. Three minutes later, ahead of schedule, Donatello met them fully clothed. He wore a purple long sleeved shirt, and blue jeans. He had pulled his pair back into a ponytail.

"Have you checked on Raph and Mikey?" Donatello asked.

"Not yet, but we are going to check on them now." Leonardo replied.

Michelangelo's room was next. His room was decorated with sport stuff, video game stuff, and everything that the hyperactive turtle enjoyed. The group of three looked over to his bed, but did not see him.

"Hi Master Splinter, hey bros!" Mikey called.

The group of three looked over at him. Mikey was sprawled out on a bean bag chair reading a comic book. He had headphones on, and was listening to music. Leonardo looked at his appearance. Mikey had short light brown hair, and blue eyes. Mikey also had freckles on his cheeks. He wore an orange hoodie, and pale blue jeans. Master Splinter ran a hand down his face in annoyance to his youngest son's antics.

"Michelangelo." Master Splinter said.

Mikey continued reading his comic book.

"Michelangelo!" Master Splinter yelled.

"Yes Sensei?" Mikey asked.

"We are going to check on Raphael, to see if he is safe." Master Splinter said.

"Okay, have fun." Mikey replied.

"We are doing it as a family." Master Splinter told him.

"Do I have to?" Mikey whined.

Master Splinter gave him a stern look.

"Fine." Mikey replied.

Mikey slowly got up and joined them. The four of them found Raphael's room last. It was near a flight of stairs.

_How come I was the only one not in a room? _Leonardo thought.

Raphael's room was decorated with punching bags, armor, and other things that would keep the hotheaded turtles interest. They found him curled up on his bed, fully dressed. His gear that he wore as a turtle was neatly folded, and put to the side. Raphael's back was to them, but they could see that he had black hair. Master Splinter went over to nudge him awake. Raphael turned over, and Leonardo could see more of his features. His brother had slanted pale green eyes. He had delicate features like his brothers, but they were more defined and sharp. He wore a green hoodie and dark blue jeans that a hole in one of the knees.

"How come you are dressed and I wasn't when I woke up?" Donatello demanded.

Raphael looked over at his brother.

"I woke up and was cold, I saw these and put them on, then I went back to sleep." Raphael replied.

"Good, now that you are well rested, I can say this. What were you thinking?!" Donatello shouted.

Leonardo turned to his brother in shock at his outburst, and Mikey slinked away from is annoyed brother.

"Hey! If I recall we all wanted to be humans, so we got our wish, the end!" Raphael shouted back.

Donatello's eyes flashed in anger, and he opened his mouth to retort.

"Enough!" Master Splinter told them. "What Raphael did was not safe, but we are together and we must appreciate that. We will accept this gift, and spend our time as humans."

Mikey had disappeared while Master Splinter was talking to his others sons.

"Dudes!" They heard Mikey exclaim.

Master Splinter, and his three oldest sons, went to see what caught Mikey's interest.

"We are staying in a mansion!" Mikey exclaimed.

Sure enough, the place they were was a mansion; it had property as far as the eye could see. There were indoor pools, outside pools, a large garden, and a large courtyard. The mansion itself looked like it had over fifty rooms, and a movie theater, along with another entertainment center. Leonardo, Raphael, and Donatello stared at the large house in shock. Master Splinter was shocked, but was a bit more reserved in showing it. Mikey ran down the stairs to investigate his new home.

"Where are we?" Leonardo asked.

"I'm not sure. Maybe we are still in New York." Donatello replied.

"Can't be, can it?" Raphael asked.

"I'm calling April and Casey, ooh, let's throw a party!" Mikey exclaimed.

"You are not throwing a party! Go clean up your room, it is a mess!" Master Splinter told him.

"Aw, do I have to; there are so many things to explore." Mikey whined.

Master Splinter raised an eyebrow.

"Fine."

The youngest son did a slouching walk back to his room to clean it up.

"The rest of you, do whatever you like, I am going to meditate." Master Splinter told his three remaining sons.

"Hai Sensei." They replied.

"Want to go swimming in the indoor pool? It's probably heated." Leonardo asked.

"Sure, it could be fun." Donatello replied.

"Pass." Raphael replied. "I am going back to sleep."

Once Raphael left, Leonardo turned to Donatello.

"So, where are we?"

Donatello just shrugged in response.

**To Be Continued…**

**Note:** Thank you for reading, and I will see you in the next chapter!


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